Description
Mobilizing capital to achieve investment returns while making the world a better place sounds like a good idea — but is this possible? And if so, why aren’t more companies and investors already doing it? Unlike existing works that focus narrowly on single stakeholder groups, Sustainable Investing For Profit and Impact by Dr. Matthew Dearth and James Cheo offers a well-rounded examination of the entire ecosystem from companies and investors to governments. Designed like a "liberal arts course in finance," the book emphasizes the critical thinking required to make sense of challenges to capital allocation, making it accessible to both newcomers and experienced professionals. Interspersed throughout the text are findings from academic research as well as interviews with leading practitioners from major financial institutions, exchanges, and international organizations.
The book includes sections on environmental, social, and governance challenges; corporate measurement and disclosure practices; government regulation and carbon pricing mechanisms; popular sustainable investing strategies including impact investing; and practical portfolio construction guidance for individual and professional investors. Examples are drawn from markets around the world, including a uniquely Asian point of view absent from other books on the topic.
Combining academic foundations with real-world applications, Sustainable Investing For Profit and Impact provides readers with the holistic perspective necessary to navigate the rapidly evolving sustainable finance landscape. It serves as an essential resource for students, professionals, and policymakers seeking to understand how sustainability considerations are reshaping modern corporate behavior, investment practice, and regulation.
Table of Contents
Acknowledgments vii
About the Authors ix
Introduction xi
Part One Challenges Ahead
Chapter 1 Environmental Issues 3
Chapter 2 Social Issues 9
Chapter 3 Governance Issues 17
Chapter 4 Mobilizing for Action 29
Part Two Corporate Sustainability
Chapter 5 The Relationship Between Companies, People, and Planet 45
Chapter 6 Sustainability Measurement and Reporting 55
Chapter 7 Financing Sustainability: Green, Social, and Sustainability Bonds and Other Instruments 75
Part Three Regulations and Companies
Chapter 8 Corporate Disclosure Requirements 107
Chapter 9 Defining Green: Greenwashing and Taxonomies 119
Chapter 10 Taxes and Carbon Markets 139
Part Four Sustainable Investing
Chapter 11 Interpreting Corporate Sustainability Disclosures: Environmental, Social, and Governance Ratings 155
Chapter 12 Sustainable Investing Strategies 171
Chapter 13 Impact Investing 223
Chapter 14 Sustainable Investing Across Asset Classes and Geographies 235
Chapter 15 Greenwashing and Investor Disclosure Regulations 243
Part Five Incorporating Sustainability into Your Portfolio
Chapter 16 Selecting Sustainable Investments 251
Chapter 17 Portfolio Construction and Risk Management 259
Conclusion: The Difference We Make 271
List of Terms and Abbreviations 279
Endnotes 287
Academic References 309
Index 313
